Chargers fans really, really want to see Jim Harbaugh draft Ashton Jeanty

Chris Roling | Oct 6, 2024

Brian Losness-Imagn Images

At least one NFL mock draft has suggested the Los Angeles Chargers use a first-round pick on Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty. 

But Chargers fans don’t need any help putting the idea of Jim Harbaugh getting his hands on Jeanty together. 

Jeanty is a West Coast powerhouse Chargers fans know all about after his dominant 1,347 yards and 14 scores in 2023. Five games into the 2024 season, he’s sitting on 1,031 yards and 16 scores on a 10.9 per-carry average. 

After Jeanty dropped 186 yards and three scores during a 62-30 win over Utah State on Saturday (on 13 carries!), Chargers fans were out in force on social media.

One fan account tweeted this out above news of Khalil Mack’s fine: “not the chargers year once again. hit with the curse per usual. ill see you in april ashton jeanty.”

Another kept it even simpler: “No way in he– the league lets Harbaugh get Jeanty”

And one fan, still hurting from the Chargers passing on LSU wideout Malik Nabers in last year’s draft, said the front office can start to mend fences with fans: “ashton jeanty wouldn’t replace the hole the chargers fo left in my heart because of The Nabers Incident™ but it would certainly help!”

It’s not just fans, either. An expert like ESPN’s Bill Barnwell has also campaigned for the idea. 

Harbaugh’s Michiagn-esque ground-based approach (Greg Roman’s from Baltimore, too) has received some criticism for its impact on Justin Herbert so far. But it’s early, and J.K. Dobbins has been effective at 6.1 yards per carry. 

But the idea of Jeanty joining Harbaugh and Herbert as a foundational piece of this new Chargers era isn’t exactly going to quiet down anytime soon. 

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